What the hell just happened? Do you have any idea how difficult it is to interpolate Italian text, when you only know French? (and some HS latin) That said, some of the more impatient fans across the pond have applied…
The rotten tribes finally get their payoff.
Congratulations, idiots!
in the context of spotted flower at least, this is very heterosexual so i’m not sure anyone invested in the ship for “rotten” reasons got a payoff they want
My introduction to Genshiken was back in 2010. I had insomnia and some mental health issues, and it made it difficult to wake up and get to school in the morning. For a while, I had a routine of waking up 30 minutes early to watch an episode of the Genshiken anime to help get my day started in a positive way. I wasn’t particularly invested in it, but overall I would say the series briefly helped me through some hard times in a small way.
The Genshiken Nidaime anime series came out in 2013 and I watched it as it aired. I became very invested very quickly in Hato as a character and the potential of where the series could go. I bought the omnibuses for all of the original manga and read it all at once from the beginning, and I caught up on the manga. I was super into it!
I’m more of an anime person. I don’t read manga very often. When I do read manga, I’m really bad at keeping up with ongoing series because I forget what happens in between chapters. The fact that I kept up with Genshiken and looked forward to it each month and was very involved with it is really saying something, because that’s the only time I was ever really able to do that with a manga.
As Genshiken went on, I became more and more confident in where it was heading. Sometimes people would send me an ask saying they were worried that HatoMada was not going to be canon, and I’d say I’m not worried. Because it’s more fun to look forward to where the story is heading than be anxious about it! I don’t regret that outlook, though I turned out to be wrong. I had a good time while it lasted.
I think I’ve said all I can about my disappointment regarding how Genshiken turned out in older posts, so I want to say that I had an overall very positive experience. Genshiken was a very entertaining manga with well-written characters. It may have self-destructed in the end, turning everything I cared most about into ashes, but that’s life I guess.
Thank you everyone who’s ever kept up with Genshiken or kept up with me. I even got to meet one of you at AnimeFest the other week, which was very cool! I had a great time running this tumblr and hearing other people’s perspectives and getting asks from you guys, and feeling like a nice little community where we all loved Genshiken.
narrativepriorities said: Yeah I’d held out hope longer than most, but the new chapter is like a total garbage fire. It’s not just that he ended up with Sue, it’s that it comes winging totally out of nowhere, and half the chapter is him taking about how he believes in the power of moe, I wish I was kidding holy cow.
glad kio lit the garbage fire for me to throw my manga volumes into
so what do you think about the correctly translated chapter out today?
Thanks for letting me know it came out!
Between all three translations, I’m pretty sure any differences are something the particular translator inferred from context rather than The Correct Way. There’s never been that much difference anyway, I feel the same I have this whole time. There’s not going to be some magical alternate translation that changes any problems I’ve already expressed.
Hato is not getting a happy ending unless this chapter is retconned.My GUESS for what happens after this, is there is one last concluding arc. One where very little development happens each chapter and goes on for many many chapters and ultimately over all doesn’t go in a direction I’m particularly interested in or care much for at all.
It's so disappointing to see queer baiting done in Genshiken! It's so horrible! So cruel for lgbt+ fans!
Now more than ever I have no idea what Kio’s intentions were with Genshiken’s development. In spite of how things turned out, nothing changes Madarame and Hato have romantic feelings for each other. This was very close to being something huge, but it crashed and burned.
Have you read my translation of the key scenes? Not sure if it'll change your mind, but you might have been reading a bad translation.
I do really appreciate you sending me this ask, and I read your translation.
Hato’s insecurities from the start have been over accepting it’s ok to like BL, it’s ok to like to present as a woman, and it’s ok to like men. The character arcs of Genshiken so far have been about learning to accept yourself for who you are. It feels unfair to Hato if that final hurdle never gets crossed. Is it just set in stone that Hato will never feel comfortable in a relationship with a man?
Whether the line about never loving another man means “I’m going after women from now on” or “I’ll never love ANYONE again”, either way is cruel treatment toward my favorite character, and I wanted better for Hato.
It reminds me of Spotted Flower, where I immediately disliked the portrayal of “Hato”. I think it’s great she becomes a mangaka and even gets top surgery, but the idea that Hato is still angstily pining after Madarame and flirting with him while they’re BOTH(?) in separate committed relationships is so… eugh.
If Hato is meant to never even try a relationship with Madarame (they couldn’t at least TRY and see if the two of them can work through Hato’s insecurities together?) because it’s doomed to failure and it’s apparently been decided Hato’s self doubt is incurable, Hato at the very least deserves to let go of Madarame forever and have a happy life.
If Madarame and Hato both have feelings for each other, but cannot be together because Hato will never get over that Madarame is a guy, then Hato will never be able to get together with ANY guy, and will either be alone forever, or end up with a girl.
And y’know…if Hato does end up with Yajima, I will consider this a “I don’t love men, I just love you” scenario.
This actually feels like a bad joke. I previously never would have thought it possible that a single chapter could change my feelings towards an entire series. Everything leading up to this just feels meaningless now. How has anybody changed or grown? How is this satisfying for anybody, shippers or otherwise? Is this seriously what all of that was building to?
I keep thinking about all the money I’ve spent on this series...life is a joke.
I've been following the story every month for the last 2 years, and the recent chapter has left me feeling hollow. It feels to me like every action the characters took was so untruthful to who they are as people. Every harem member accepted it immediately - why? Anyway, it should have been Hato - I feel like every chapter builds to this outcome. Madarame was ready to get physical with him the night before, and they were talking about sex that very day. This is so unexpected. It's bad writing! :(
Put this manga out of our misery and end it already for God’s sake.
wow I can't believe Kio really went there, the worst way to end an harem is choosing nobody... I mean no matter who Mada went with it could be constructed as character development but yeah 'lol no homo' is basically the worst send-off for Hato X_X
I avidly followed this manga for over 2 1/2 years because of my investment in Hato. I’m tired.